L-Carnitine’s Surprising Heart Health Role**

Pump It Up!

A favorite of bodybuilders and gym rats everywhere, L-Carnitine is an amino acid naturally produced in the body with antioxidant activity that helps optimize recovery, powers muscular contractions and plays a role in cellular energy.** As it turns out, these sports nutrition benefits may also help your hardest-working muscle: the heart.**

Here’s the first clue: approximately 98% of the body’s L-Carnitine stores are located in the muscles and in cardiac tissue – at a concentration of 70X more than what is in your blood.

In the heart’s cardiac tissue, L-Carnitine hangs out in the cells’ mitochondria (power plants) to do what it does best: Promote energy production.** Specifically, L-Carnitine shuttles fatty acids into heart cells’ mitochondria, where they can be used as fuel to generate energy.** This is critically important because sub-optimal heart function can be linked with energy deficits.¹ An energized heart is a healthy heart, and L-Carnitine seems to help you get there.**

L-Carnitine’s antioxidant activity is a bonus for cardiovascular health. The heart is the site of high oxidative stress. L-Carnitine’s presence in the heart may help fight the damaging effects of destructive free radicals.**

Intriguingly, L-Carnitine supplements may also help to promote exercise efforts in those needing extra heart support.** This important nutritional benefit might just assist those who are actively trying to promote their heart health with cardio fitness programs.**

In a double-blind, randomized and placebo-controlled study of 44 men needing extra heart support, supplementation with L-Carnitine seemed to help. Men who took 1g of L-Carnitine twice daily over a period of four weeks appeared to benefit from supplementation. Researchers concluded those taking L-Carnitine enjoyed better exercise tolerance when compared with those who took the placebo.²

L-Carnitine: It’s not just for Gym Rats anymore. Listen to your heart, it's saying: "I do limitless 'reps' every day, is there any workout more high-intensity than mine? Gimme some L-Carnitine supplements and let’s hit the gym to pump up our cardiovascular health!"

1. Baggio E, Gandini R, Plancher AC, Passeri M, Carmosino G. Italian multicenter study on the safety and efficacy of coenzyme Q10 as adjunctive therapy in heart failure (interim analysis). The CoQ10 Drug Surveillance Investigators. Clin Investig. 1993;71(8 Suppl):S145-9.

2. Cherchi A, Lai C, Angelino F, Trucco G, et al. Effects of L-carnitine on exercise tolerance in chronic stable angina: a multicenter, double-blind, randomized, placebo controlled crossover study. Int J Clin Pharmacol Ther Toxicol. 1985 Oct;23(10):569-72.